Lionel Ritchie is known for his easy listening, romantic ballads that he composed and sang himself. Songs like “Easy”, “Three Times A Lady”, “Still” and “Truly” have all topped the charts and remain hugely popular across generations.

Lionel was born in Tuskegee, Alabama, on June 20, 1949. He spent his early years on the Tuskegee High School campus and then moved to Illinois, where he completed his high school studies at Joliet Township High School, East Campus. His tennis skills earned him a scholarship to Tuskegee High School, where he graduated with a minor in economics.

In addition to his sports activities while studying at Tuskegee, he also formed different R&B groups in the mid-’60s. One of them was the Commodores, who didn’t so much start, but joined in 1968 as a saxophonist and, unbeknownst to him at the time, moment, his future was assured. The group performed as a support act for the Jacksons, who were at the height of their popularity at the time. The Commodores’ first recording contract was with Atlantic Records, but they moved to Motown Records after only one recording.

This was a smart move, and at Motown the band established their name with funky dance sounds like “Machine Gun” and “Brick House.” It was also at this time that Lionel began to make his way into the mainstream as a solo songwriter and performer.

He identified with easy-listening romantic ballads that he wrote and performed himself. His songwriting skills became more appreciated and recognized in the late 1970s when he wrote songs for other artists, rather than just for himself. His composition “Lady” for Kenny Rogers topped the charts in 1980, and Rogers insisted that Lionel produce his album “Share Your Love” in 1981.

She sang a duet with Diana Ross on the 1981 “Endless Love,” the theme song for the film of the same title. Regarded as one of Motown’s biggest hits, this single topped the UK and US charts, and in 1982, Ritchie decided to pursue a solo career.

This move brought Lionel Ritchie recognition as an American singer, songwriter, and record producer who sold over 100 million records. In 1982, his self-titled debut album “Lionel Ritchie” scored three hit singles. One of the three that still contained his Commodores style was “Truly”, which topped the charts. This single launched his career to instant popularity and listed him as one of the most successful balladeers of the ’80s. The other two hit songs that made it to the top 5 were “You Are” and “My Love”.

With his first album selling over 4 million copies and peaking at no. 3 on the charts, a follow-up album titled “Can’t Slow Down” was released in 1983. It surpassed the first, selling over 8 million copies and winning the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. The album contained his no. 1, “All Night Long”, promoted very effectively by a colorful music video that brought out the Caribbean flavor of the song.

1994 followed a string of four top ten hits, including the number one hit “Hello”, which moved him away from his R&B image and was also his most successful recording. The other three were “Stuck on You” at No. #3, “Running With the Night” at No. #7 and “Penny Lover” at No. #8.

In 1985, he wrote and performed “Say You, Say Me”, which stayed at No. 1 on the US charts for four weeks. This theme song from the film White Nights earned him the number 1 song of 1985 and a critic’s description of him as “the black Barry Manilow”. Rather an insult to many of Lionel’s fans! Another achievement of the year was his teamwork with Michael Jackson’s charity resulting in the #1 single “We Are the World” from USA for Africa.

Another successful album titled “Dancing on the Ceiling” was released in 1986. This contained, among others, her aforementioned hits “Say You, Say Me” and “Dancing on the Ceiling”, and also “Ballerina Girl” and “Se La “. It is here that the effective use of the music video accompanied the title cut, and was also in the same animated tempo of “All Night Long (All Night)”. After this successful album, Ritchie’s career slowed as he cared for his ailing father Lionel Ritchie, Sr. in Alabama, who died in 1990.

In 1992, he released his album “Back to Front”, a collection of his early greatest hits, after which he received very limited public exposure. It was in 1996 when she decided to return with the release of “Louder than Words”, a song that showed that she had not lost her talent for well-crafted soul music. However, she did not receive the same acclaim that the works of the 1980s received, perhaps due to her lack of exposure during the previous two years.

Lionel’s married and family life was a combination of ups and downs. In 1975, he married his college sweetheart Brenda Harvey. Their marriage did not work out well and they separated, after which Lionel had a relationship with Diane Alexander in 1986. Brenda discovered the affair in 1988 and finally filed for divorce on August 9, 1993 after 17 years of marriage.

Lionel married Diane Alexander on December 21, 1995 but they divorced in January 2004. They had a son, Miles Brochman, born May 27, 1994, and a daughter, Sofia, born August 26, 1998.

Although his solo singing career failed to take off the second time around, Ritchie was still able to produce six top 80 singles in the UK after 2004. He also made a few live appearances on a few special occasions and appeared on Top Gear, a series of British motoring television. The segment was “Star in an Affordable Car,” where he appeared in his Suzuki Liana and was interviewed by host Jeremy Clarkson.

He also reunited with Kenny Rogers on a CMT crossroads special. Their friendship both in and out of the music world was featured in this November 2005 episode. Ritchie also hosted and performed on the British TV show An Audience with Lionel Ritchie on December 9, 2006. He was able to perform his hit song ” Hello” during the Grammy Awards on February 11, 2007 and the grand finale performing “All Night”. Long (All Night)” on Australian Idol on November 25, 2007.

His most recent performances include New Year’s Eve in Time’s Square on December 31, 2008 and on Season 8 of American Idol with contestant Danny Gokey on May 20, 2009. Ritchie received the George and Ina Gershwin Lifetime Achievement Award. on May 2, 2009. 2008, making him the twenty-first winner of this prestigious award.